The Arizona State and Arizona men’s basketball teams were scheduled to resume Pac-12 play Dec. 30 with games against UCLA and USC. Those games have now been postponed due to outbreaks of COVID-19 at both Los Angeles schools.
It will make the fourth and fifth games canceled of postponed for UCLA and the third and fourth for USC.
ASU was set to play at USC on Dec. 30 and UCLA on Jan. 1, while Arizona was to play UCLA on Dec. 30 and USC on Jan. 2.
The next game for both schools will be against each other Jan. 8 at Desert Financial Arena. The game will tip between noon and 2 p.m. and the time will be set at a later date, as FOX is working around NFL flex scheduling the final weekend of the regular season and some games could move to Saturday.
ASU (5-7) last played on Sunday when it lost at home to San Francisco 66-65.
Arizona (11-1) last played Wednesday and lost at Tennessee 77-73.
Previously, ASU men’s basketball coach Bobby Hurley addressed COVID-19 concerns.
In addition, the UCLA women’s basketball games against the Arizona schools have been postponed. Like the men, the UCLA women have been on pause, with this making their fourth and fifth cancellations of postponements.
Two days ago the Pac-12 updated its game cancellation policies, with many of the mandates similar to what was in place a year ago. Schools are still subject to local public health requirements in their own states.
Like last season, teams must have a minimum of seven scholarships players available. If that is not the case, the conference can reschedule a game. This policy is retroactive to any results beginning with the 2021-22 Pac-12 basketball season, which includes the previously canceled Dec. 5 UCLA at Washington men’s basketball contest. That originally was ruled a forfeit due to issues in the Washington program.
Should not all games be played, the team with the highest won-lost percentage for all conference games will be the conference champion. That applies even in the event one or more teams cannot play its entire 20-game conference schedule. In order for teams to be eligible for the conference championship, teams must play no less than three fewer conference games than the average number of conference games played by all teams.
Reach the reporter at [email protected] or 602 444-4783. Follow her on Twitter @MGardnerSports.
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